How chief officers view success in fire policy and management

This paper reports on research that asked chief officers from Australia's fire and emergency services what they identify as a measure of success. When identifying appropriate measures of success, community members need to consider and acknowledge multiple, sometimes competing issues. Accordingly this research cannot give a definitive answer to 'what is the measure of success?' but it is argued that emergency services, political leaders and at-risk communities need to engage in a more meaningful discussion about what can realistically be expected from each other. The outcomes of those discussions have to move past the rhetoric that 'this should never happen again' and need to be reflected in the policy and legislative goals that instruct emergency managers and in the ongoing communication about risk and responsibility for managing risk.